Direction signal



rJuly 8, 19.24.

P. Z. NICHOLAS DIRECTION SIGNAL Filed oct. 6, 1922 "III" l Patented July 8, 1924.

UNITED STATES PETER Z. NICHOLAS, OF CHARLIESTOVVN',V MASSACHUSETTS.

DIRECTION SIGNAL;

Application filed October 6, 1922.

T0 all whom it may 0071067172.:

Be it known that I, PETER Z. NICHOLAS, a citizen of the United States (having taken out his iirst papers), residing at Charlestown, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Direction Signal, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to a signal for use on automobiles to indicate to the drivers of other vehicles or pedestrians the course which the vehicle is to take.

The principal objects of the invention are to provide a convenient and easily operated device which will show clearly either at night or in the day-time andrwill indicate correctly the direction the driver is to take; to provide means whereby when the indicator is operated a signal will be given by the horn of the car automatically and without requiring the operator to give the blowing of the horn any attention whatever; and to provide improvements in the connections by which these various things are secured.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a face view of the electric circuit connecting ring of the device showing the electrical connections diagrammaticaliy;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation;

Fig. 3 is a face view of the operating wheel;

Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of one of the signal members partly in central section; and

Fig. 5 is a plan thereof.

The invention is intended to give a lighted signal at night and merely an ordinary direction signal in the daytime and is adapted to be controlled by a controlling hand wheel 10 mounted on the dash or on the steering column, if desired. This wheel is provided with letters as indicated in 3 or other insignia for showing the direction in which the operator is intending to drive. This wheel is indicated as showing the usual letters as A for ahead, R and L for right and left and S for slow or stop.

If it is located on the dash as indicated, the dash is provided withv a stationary pointer 11 preferably at the top to which the letter that indicates the direction in which the car is to go is brought to cause the device tooperate in the desired manner. This hand wheel is provided with a shaft 12 extending through the dash and sup- Scrial No. 592,753.

ported beyond it in any desired way. It is provided with a pair of springs 13 of thin flexible steel constituting electrical brushes to conduct the current. The two springs are located directly opposite each other and are arranged to conduct current from one to the other but are insulated from the shaft 12 by insulation 14 so that they will not conduct a current to the ground or any other part of the vehicle or any electrical instruments.

These brushes at their points which are farthest apart ride on the inner cylindrical surface ofv a stationary circular ring 15 of hard rubber, vulcanized fiber or other insulating material. This ring is supported on brackets 16 secured to the back of the dash in the present Jform. Into this ring are set inserts 17 of brass, copper or other conducting material, each one flush with the inner surface of the ring so that the brushes or springs 13 as they rotate will contact always with the opposite sides of the ring. This ring being out of sight in the form shown does not have to have any designations but designations are shown on Fig. 1 merely to make the diagrammatic view clear. These designations include the same ones that are on the hand wheel 10 and, in

addition, the letter H appears in four places to indicate the blowing of the horn.

Electrical connections are provided including a battery 2O or other source of power grounded at 21 and connected at 22 with one of the metallic conducting inserts 17, all of which have conductors extending through the ring for this purpose. I have shown the wire from the battery as extending to the insert 17 which is marked S for slow or stop in the diagram. It is also connected to the one directly to the left of the same and to the two at the right. These four inserts marked respectively H, S, H and RV on the diagram are connected toget-her to one side of the battery or other source of power. It is to be noted that these four inserts are not connected to anything else electrically, being insulated from all other conductors by the ring 15 which supports them.

The inserts marked A and L could also be directly connected together but I have shown, for clearness, each of them as connected by a separate wire to a feeder 23 exi tending to one side of avisible signed device shown as a lamp 24 and through this in series to the corresponding side Vof another lamp 24. These two lamps, as will appear, are at the front and rear of the vehicle respectively. The second lamp is grounded in an obvious manner. In a similar way the other two inserts 17 marked H on the diagram could be connected directly together but I have shown two wires extending to one terminal of an audible signal device, shown as a horn 25. This horn is grounded in the usual way.

It will be seen from this that when the hand wheel is set in the usual position with the A thereon in registration with the stationary pointer 11 at the top, the brushes 13 will be in the position shown in Fig. 1 and conduct a current from the battery through them to the two lights 24, keeping them burning. Ihene-ver the hand wheel is turned away from this position in either direction, the lights go out. If it is turned around either to theright or the left 90 degrees, it will first blow the horn by passing one of the inserts H in Fig. 1 and then again light the lamps 24 when it gets to the 90 degrees position. This is t-rue, no mattei' in which direction it is turned. If, starting with the position shown in Fig. 1, the operator desires to show that he is going to slow up or stop without turning, he can swing the wheel half way around in either direction. The first effect of this is to cause the horn to blow, then the lights to light up, then the horn to blow again and finally the lights to light up and stay lighted as long as he keeps the hand wheel in the slow position and it will be observed that the parts look the same as they do in Fig. V1 for the ahead position.

It will be obvious that the object of the electrical arrangements so far described is simply to lightV the lamps 24 when the operatortiu'ns the hand wheel 10 to any one of the four positions indicated and to automatically blow the horn as it is going from any one of these positions to the next one so that it is" blown once if he is to turn to the right or left and it is blown twice if he is to stop or slow up without turning. The blowing of the horn it will be observed is entirely automatic and the operator does not have to think of it if he is using the controlling wheel Y10. He also can blow his horn at any timlehe desires in the usual way which is not illustrated herein lor he can blow itas much as he pleases by turning the Vhand wheel to any degrees position, but

in doing that he turns off :his lights if he is i driving at night.

Y drives a vertical shaft 31 at right angles to the shaft l2. Onthis shaft'31 is a bevel gear drivingtwo-bevel gears, one ,on a shaftl 33 at right angles to the shaft 31 and the other on a shaft which is provided with a spur gear 34 meshing with a spur gear 35 on a shaft 36. The shaft 36 is nearly in alignment with the4 shaft 33 and similarly loc-ated vided with a bevel gear which meshes with a gear 37 on a hollow vertical shaft 38. These two shafts 33 are mounted at the front and rear of the vehicle respectively in bearings 29 on the frame and turn with the respective bevel gears 37. At the top each shaft 38 is provided with a square casing 39 having four transparent walls or windows, each one provided with a Vword which indicates the direction of the vehicle. For example, they are provided with t-he words Ahead, Right, Left` anditop:7 or Slow respectively, as indicated in Fig. 5. Gn top of this casing there is an arrow 40 which points in the direction of the word Ahead on the Vcasing so that it will'always indicate the direction in which the driver is going for use in the daytime. Y

l Mounted on a bracket 41 at the side of the car is a stationary rod 42 extending Vup through the hollow shaft 3S. It is provided at the top with one of the lamps 24. The wires from this lamp may extend down through the shaft 38 outside the fixed rod 42 or the latter can be made in the form of a smaller pipe and the wires brought down through it. One of lthem is grounded as shown in Fig. 1 and the other connects to the wire 23, either directly or through the other lamp 24.

It has been described above how the turning of the cont-rolling wheel 10 lights .the

lamps and blows the horn, and how the casing 39 is depended upon for showing the direct-ion, the lamp remaining stationary, and merely lighting up in' each position to which the brushes 13 are turned indicating a direction. Just assoon as thev brushes reach this position, the lamps light up, thus illuminating the casing, and thus permitting the public to 'see the signal which is displayed by the position of the casing 39. In the daytime the lights can be-turned off and the arrowY 40 will give the direction in a more simple manner. Y Y

Although I have illustratedand described: only one form vof the invention, I am aware of the fact that modifications can be made therein by any person skilled 4in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as expressed in the claims. rIherefore, I do notV wish to be limited to all the Vdetails of construction or thel exact positions of the partsshown but ,what I do cla-im is :A 1.V In a direction signal, the combination iii() of la ycontifolling xha'nd wheel, an insulating l ring having pairs of opposite metallic inserts, a source of electric energy connected with certain of the inserts, the other inserts being divided into two series, a lighting circuit connected with those of one series, a horn circuit connected with those of the other series, an electric light in the lighting circuit, and a horn in the horn circuit, whereby when the controlling wheel is turned to indicate a change in direction, the horn will be blown automatically.

9,. In a direction signal, the combination of a controlling hand wheel, a shaft therefor, conducting brushes located oppositely on said shaft, a stationary insulating ring in position to be engaged at all times on the inside by said brushes at opposite points on the ring, said ring having pairs of opposite metallic inserts, a source of electric energy permanently connected with the inserts on one half of the ring, the other inserts being divided into two series, those of one series being connected with a lightingcircuit and those of the other series with a horn circuit, an electric light in the lighting circuit, and a horn in the horn circuit, the inserts connected with the horn being arranged alternately around the ring with those connected with the light, whereby when the controlling wheel is turned from one position to another to indicate a change in direction, the horn will be blown automatically.

3. In a direction indicator, the combination of a controlling wheel, a shaft on which it is mounted, a pair of opposite brushes on the shaft for conducting the current, an insulating ring in which said brushes rotate, the inside of which they contact all the time, means for connecting one half of said ring with a source for electric power, the other half of said ring having a plurality of conducting inserts spaced apart for contacting with one of said brushes as the brush is rotated, electric circuits connected with said inserts, audible and visible signal devices in said circuits adapted to be energized by the circuits when one brush contacts with the corresponding insert, and to be connected alternately, a support rotatably mounted and connected with said shaft to rotate exactly in unison with it, and an indicator thereon co-operating with the visible signal device to show the direction to which the controlling wheel is set when the visible signal is illuminated.

4. In a direction signal, the combination with an operating wheel having designations showing the direction to be indicated, a conducting contact-making device rotatable therewith, means in position to be engaged by said contacting device as the wheel turns for making electrical contacts when the wheel is turned to any one of a plurality of predetermined positions, an electric lamp connected with certain of said contacts and with a source of power so as to be lighted when 'the contactingdevice is in engagement with an;v of the last named contacts, an audible signal, means connected with others of said contacts for automatically sounding the audible signal when the wheel is turned so that they can come into contact with the contact making device, a casing surrounding said electric lamp and having a plurality of transparent sides provided with singal indicia, and means connected with said wheel for rotating said casing with the wheel so that the casing will give the desired signal.

5. In a direction indicator, the combination with a rotary controlling wheel, a shaft on which said wheel is mounted, a pair of electric conductors constituting brushes fixed on opposite sides of, and rotating with, said shaft, said brushes being connected together and insulated from the shaft, a ring of insulating material located in position for its inner surface to be engaged by said brushes all the time as they rotate, said ring having a series of inserts of conducting material flush with the inner surface thereof and arranged in opposite pairs whereby said brushes will contact with them and establish electrical connections one by one as they rotate, a source of electrical energy connected to half of the inserts on one side of the ring, a conductor connected with the inserts on the other side, an electric lamp connected with said conductor, whereby the lamp will be lighted when the brushes contact with the inserts connected with it, a rod on which said electric lamp is located, a hollow shaft surrounding said rod, means connected with the first named shaft for rotating the hollow shaft at the same time the first named shaft is rotated and to the same degree, and a casing on the hollow shaft surrounding the lamp and rotating with the hollow shaft, said casing having four sides each provided with means for indicating a different direction, whereby the one visible to the public will show the direction in which the controlling wheel is set.

6. In a direction indicator, the combination with a rotary controlling wheel, a shaft on which said wheel is mounted, electric conductors constituting brushes fixed on said shaft, a ring of insulating material, a series of inserts of conducting material, said brushes contacting with them and establishing electrical connections one by one as they rotate, a source of electrical energy connected to half of the inserts, a conductor connected with the other inserts, an electric lamp connected with said conductor, whereby the lamp will be lighted when the brushes contact with the inserts connected with it, a rod on which said electric lamp io` located, o hollow ,Shaft oououndog said. rod; m oonnotecl with the' fist' 'azllol Sha-'ft for rotating the hollow Shaft at the Vsfcfjn time the first named Sllaft's rotated aild'to the same degree,- zmd a Casing on the hollow shaft surrounding the lamp-angl ro;- tatng with the hollow Shaft, said vahsilvgg;

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